What Really Happened
by Novice Comic Lover
Summary: Writers always get things wrong. Here's the real story behind the X-men Evolution show. Kitty's POV with major Lancitty, but of course hints of Jott, Romy, Kurty, Kurmanda, and several other pairings. Read with What Really Really Happened  Lance's POV .
1. Prologue

"I can't believe this shi..." my glare cut him off and he quickly rerouted. "show."

"It's just a little cartoon," I sighed, trying to curl back up against him. Just seconds ago, we had been so pleasantly cuddled together on the couch.

"Yeah, sure. A cartoon of our lives!" he stood up and whirled around to face me.

"Here we go," I grumbled. He always had a short fuse, the smallest thing setting him on edge. I turned to the television and suddenly found myself wishing I had telepathy so I could make him forget about the show. We had been approached by some Hollywood types, along with several of our friends and teammates, asking if we would be interested in signing away our story for them to create an entertaining comic reference. None of us thought much of it, since we were constantly being asked to throw ourselves in the limelight-comes with the territory of being a superhero I guess-and so we barely glanced over the paperwork they had thrown our way before signing on the dotted line.

"I mean come on! You were not some innocent, little, 15 year old when we met, and I was not some common orphan with a penchant for spray paint!" he gestured wildly, as he paced between the couch where I was lazily watching him and the television that was still playing the atrocity.

"They told us they were going to take some liberties. They couldn't exactly have little kids watching… well, some of the things that happened," I countered, fixing him with a knowing look.

"Okay, yeah, some things aren't for young eyes and ears, but did they have to make it out like I was a thug going after a princess?" he frowned, watching his cartoon version self rock the ground in an attack on the cartoon version of me. I got up from the couch and came behind him, hooking my arms under his. I pushed my hands down on his shoulders to help pull me up towards him, lightly pressing a trail of kisses from his shoulder up his neck to his ear.

"Well, we both know what really happened," I murmured against his skin, as I felt him relax against me.

"This is exactly what I mean," he pulled me from him and turned so our eyes locked. "No one has a clue just how far from the truth they are."

"But you do. You always knew," I smiled as he pulled me to him. "You always saw through any mask I had on. Isn't it enough that we both know what really happened?"

"Of course it is. It's just," he paused and looked away. I traced his frown with my index finger before following his eyes.

"I know," I whispered, nuzzling my head into his chest. He held me for a while, mindlessly twirling my hair between his fingers.

"I need to get out of this room and away from… that. I'm going to start on dinner. How does Italian sound?" he bent down and brushed his lips against mine.

"Yum," I smiled while he pulled away and headed for the kitchen. "And Italians sounds pretty good, too."

"They definitely got you all wrong," he laughed, shaking his head. I tried not to fixate on it, but he was right. While they had pinpointed some things exactly, such as the way Scott is kind of stiff, the mansion is a crazy and crowded place in the mornings, and Logan is an overprotective father figure, they had really misread a lot of other things. I grabbed my laptop and settled back onto the couch, figuring I'd get lost in some emails or work, but instead I opened up a blank document and found myself writing the real story of what had happened.


	2. Chapter 1

I can remember how it started like it was yesterday. It started one seemingly normal night that would turn my world upside down.

I was scoping out the scene in one of my favorite night spots as I stirred my drink. The fake ID I'd made myself in the chemistry lab was close to perfect, so no one hardly gave it a glance. The bartender tonight was one of the regulars who knew me by name and slid me my usual jack and coke before I even ordered it. I gratefully slid him an extra couple bucks and a nod to keep them coming as I made my way to the best spot in the club. I leaned against the wall in a spot equal distance from the bar and the dance floor, where I was able to get a decent view of everything despite my short height. I drank in the smell of tobacco, alcohol, and sweat as I looked around for that release, that little bit of fun that I so desperately craved. I wanted it now. I scanned the room, noticing plenty of guys I'd already had the pleasure of meeting, avoiding several girls who stared me down, and even picking up on a few different people I'd never remembered seeing. As I considered my options, I flicked an ice cube from my drink into my mouth, making sure to suck out every last bit of alcohol before crushing it in between my teeth.

I was perfect all day, the perfect student, the perfect teenager, the perfect daughter, so at night I liked to let go. The second my parents' heads hit the pillow, I would sneak out. The next morning, I would be in my bed, smelling faintly of the night before with blood shot eyes and a request for as many aspirin as I could get, which my parents attributed to staying up all night studying. It probably seems warped, but my parents and I actually had a pretty decent relationship, the secret of my nights being the only thing that distanced us. I almost laughed, wondering what they would think of their precious Katherine if they could see me now.

I set my mind back on the club, about to push off from the wall and join the crowd on the dance floor, hoping I'd found someone there to brush against, when suddenly my eyes caught another. He was tall and kind of thin with shaggy brown hair and a look that said who gives a crap, but he was also staring right back at me, his eyes piercing mine. I sized him up quickly, deciding he would most definitely do and started making my way towards him. I was about half way across the dance floor when two large beefy arms came around me.

"Well, well. If it isn't my favorite little pussy cat," I looked up to see a burly looking guy I recognized all too well. He was a football player from my high school that I occasionally met up with at night, but come daylight he wouldn't give me the time of day. I was okay with this arrangement, seeing as I didn't exactly want to acknowledge our time together either. I turned around to face him and tilted my head, seriously considering just leaving with him for a moment, and forced a smile even as he crushed my body to his.

"Hey, Ross. Uh, not tonight," I pushed off his chest.

"But I caught you," he sneered, wrapping his hands around my wrists. "So let's go."

"Another time," I yanked out of his grip. Before he could do anything, I casually bumped my hip into a couple dancing next to us, causing them to stumble into the couple behind Ross whose drinks splashed straight into his hair. I giggled to myself as I backed away leaving Ross to sort out the situation with the couples on the floor. I was feeling pretty cocky, but then I backed into something solid.

"Not bad," I whirled to find the guy I had been heading towards standing there. Being so close to him, I realized two things: he was a lot taller than I originally thought, and what I had mistaken as lanky was lean and trim.

"Excuse me?" I tried my best to sound offended as his eyes slowly traveled up and down my body. I felt a surge of electricity under his gaze. If he could cause that with just a look, I couldn't help but wonder what he could do with his hands.

"You managed to cause quite the little scene and still get away," he pointed over my shoulder and I followed it to see that Ross was now in a brawl with two other guys on the dance floor.

"I was just trying to…" I started suddenly feeling a little bad about what I had caused. I had just wanted to get away from Ross, I didn't want to get anyone else involved.

"Yeah, some guys don't like the word no," he chuckled, his gaze momentarily watching the fight with a hint of pleasure before turning back to me. "Maybe a girl like you would be better off tucked safely away in your bed."

"Are you offering?" I leaned in and tried to lower my voice to sound enticing. He really was quite good looking, so much so that I was questioning why I had never seen him around before.

"I'm just suggesting you stay away from places like these with guys like that. A little girl such as yourself isn't safe around here," he backed up a step, putting distance between us.

"I'm not a little girl and as you can see, I can take care of myself," I narrowed my eyes and let my hands rest on my hips. I couldn't believe that I was practically throwing myself at him and he was acting like I was some five year old. No matter how hot he was, he had just talked himself out of being with me tonight.

"Hey, I'm being kicked out. Let's go," Ross lumbered over and put his hand on my shoulder. Oh great, now I had him to deal with as well.

"She already turned you down. Take a hint," the stranger answered before I could say anything. I was just about to tell Ross to buzz off and this guy that I could fight my own battles when Ross stepped in between us.

"Mind your own business," Ross answered, his grasp on me tightening.

"Why don't you both get a clue," I snapped and shook off Ross's grip, starting to walk away.

"I said let's go," a meaty hand came around my arm. I struggled to get free, but Ross wasn't giving up. He managed to take the drink out of my hand, set it down, and still keep a good grip on me. Then the earth began to shake and I stumbled back, Ross's hand suddenly gone. I was about to slam straight into the wall when…

"What the…?" I looked around and found that I was standing in an alley outside of the club. I looked at my hands, then the wall, then back at me. I stood still, too freaked out to move, but then I heard some voices by the door and recognized them as belonging to Ross and the other guy I had just gotten away from. Thanking my lucky stars, I bolted down the alley, turned the corner, and raced past the club entrance.

"Hey!" the stranger yelled after me. I think I heard Ross yell after me too, but by that point I had made my way past them and far down the street. I'm not the most athletic girl, so I was happily surprised that they hadn't caught up to me by the time I made it to the bus stop. As I waited for the bus to come get me, I slumped against the bench and tried to remember exactly what had happened between the quakes and finding that I was outside. I hadn't had much to drink, not even finishing that first one, so I knew I didn't black out and stumble down the alley drunk. But how had I gone from being in the club one minute to being outside the next? The door was all the way across the dance floor, and with so many people there I would have had a hard time making it out all that fast. As the bus pulled up, I tried to shake it off, deciding that the quakes had shaken me to the point that I had blocked out whatever had happened before I was standing in the alley. I curled up in a bus seat close to the front and tried to focus on anything but what had happened just minutes earlier. I was frustrated and scared, but luckily I was so exhausted, that by the time I snuck back in the house and cleaned up for bed, when my head hit the pillow I was out.


	3. Chapter 2

Unfortunately, I didn't just wake up the next morning with a hangover like always. Instead I had the most terrifying nightmare that I was falling, falling down, down so very far. I screamed, waking up on the cold, hard floor with what was sure to form into a bruise on my hip. For a second I wondered if I had just rolled out of bed and hit the floor in my bedroom, but there should have been carpet and I was most certainly aching against concrete. I quickly took in what little of my surroundings I could see in the pitch black dark, realizing I was in the basement. If I had been a sleep walker, I would have just gotten up and gone back to bed. But this had never happened to me before, so I began to cry.

Soon, my parents rushed in, quickly coming to me and throwing their arms around me. My mom was comforting me and promising me it was just a bad dream, sounding more like she was trying to assure herself. Dad however, backed away like I had a rash, staring and pointing at the ceiling while mumbling incoherently. My mom and I looked up to see what he was going on about to find parts of my sheets and a good portion of my pillow sticking through the basement ceiling. While my parents studied it, tried to shake themselves from the dreams they were sure they were having, and muttering to each other, my mind was reeling. It was like back in the club, wasn't it? I had slipped through my bed, the floor, who knows what else, and more floor, to land in the basement just as easily as swimming in a pool.

"Katherine," my father tried his best to sound warm and calm, but I could hear an edge to his voice. It didn't scare me so much as hurt me. He was pulling away from me, distancing himself from the freak his perfect daughter had suddenly become. I looked up at him, noticing a hint of fear in his eyes as I moved towards him. "Let's go upstairs."

"Yes, upstairs," my mother repeated. She quickly got up, pulling me with her, her arm never leaving me. I had always been a bit of a daddy's girl, so this was maybe even a little more unsettling than falling from through the ceiling. I tried not to think about it too much, focusing on trying to remember exactly how it had happened, both at the club last night and just minutes ago. Mom and I shuffled behind my Dad, going up the stairs and joining him in my parents' bedroom. For the rest of the night, we sat there, staring at each other, no one saying a word. An alarm eventually went off, the sound cutting through the uncomfortable silence like a butcher's knife and startling us all. My father immediately got up and turned it off, tightening his robe as he moved to the bathroom. I sat shell-shocked, listening to the shower being turned on. When he came out of the bathroom, fully dressed, shaved, and cleaned up, all I could do was stare at him.

"You'll be staying home from school today," he said evenly, though his eyes darted around the room to look anywhere but at me. Then without waiting for a response, he motioned to my mom, and headed downstairs.

"It's all okay, Katherine," my mom hugged me before following him. I watched her, mussy hair and wrinkled nightgown, as she stumbled out of the room. I sat still and listened to the thunks of her feet going down the stairs. I spent another couple minutes feeling sorry for myself and then I couldn't take it anymore. I raced to my room and quietly cleaned up and dressed before sneaking down the stairs. I was opening the door, almost home free, when I heard someone behind me.

"Katherine? Where are you going?" my mother whispered. I turned and wrapped my arms around her, feeling like such a little kid for just a moment.

"I just need to get out of here. I need to go to school and feel normal and not think about this. Please, mom," I begged in hushed tones, blinking back the tears I feared would escape any minute.

"Okay," she nodded, releasing me. I didn't even bother to thank her, gripping my backpack tightly, afraid it would fall through my fingers, I closed the door behind me and ran as fast as I could to the bus stop. I had almost missed it, the doors closing just as I had arrived, but quickly opening back up once the driver caught sight of me. With a sigh, I plopped into the nearest empty seat and hoped that the day could only get better.

The first thing I saw as I got off the bus, was Ross. He threw me a dirty look, the most acknowledgment he had ever shown me at school. I hardly thought about it, focusing instead on the black eye that was so swollen his eye hardly looked open. When did he get that? I shook it off and went inside, heading straight for my locker. Unfortunately, my day was getting worse by the second. Riley, a popular athletic girl who just happened to be Ross's girlfriend, and her friend Amy were waiting for me.

"Well, well. Look at what the cat dragged in," Riley and Amy snickered as I opened up my locker and began sorting my books.

"I can't believe she'd show her face after what she did," Amy spat causing me to look up.

"What do you mean what I did?" I wracked my brain for plausible things I might have done to offend them, but came up empty, well, at least of things that they might know about.

"Yeah right, like you don't know, freak," Riley glared.

"Freak," Amy repeated.

"Uh…" I wanted to kill Ross. Why would he, of all people, admit to meeting up with me?

"You started that earthquake last night, freak. You're one of those mutants," Riley and Amy surrounded me, their eyes narrowed.

"WHAT?! What are you talking about?" They were really scaring me now. What on earth was going on?

"Ross was just trying to stop you, and you sent a quake sending him flying into the wall. You're such a freak. Now you're going to pay. No one gives my boyfriend a black eye," and with that Riley pushed me back into my locker and slammed the door shut. I screamed, pounding on the door. I didn't start any quakes and I didn't give Ross a black eye. Why was he lying? Why was he letting Riley do this? Why were they calling me a mutant?

"Help!" I continued to scream and pound on the door. Eventually, I stopped, realizing either no one could hear me or no one cared. It didn't really matter, because either way I would be missing my next class, ruining the perfect attendance record I had kept ever since third grade. I would have had a perfect attendance for my entire school life, but in second grade I had missed a full week of school because I got the chicken pox. I stood in the cramped, dark locker, Riley's words slowly creeping in. A mutant. A freak. Maybe she didn't have the full story, but was she so wrong? I was on the verge of tears when I heard something, a whistling noise maybe.

"Hello?" I yelled cautiously. Maybe a teacher was roaming the hallways?

"Hello?" a voice responded nervously.

"Help! I'm stuck in here!" I pounded on the locker door, hoping that the material was thin enough that I could easily be heard.

"Uh, which locker?" the voice responded when I stopped my racket long enough to listen.

"This one!" I screamed in frustration and shook the locker with all my might. I was missing class, and really not in the mood to be stuck in here any longer.

"Whoa, calm down! I'll find you," the voice yelled back. Then I started to feel bad. Here was this stranger, whoever it was, maybe a teacher, trying to help me out and I was losing my nerve.

"It's my locker. Number 413. Riley and Amy shoved me in," I rested my head against the door, feeling more pathetic than ever.

"That sucks, I'm sorry," the voice cooed sympathetically. "What's your combination? I'll get you out."

"32, 16, ARGH!" I fell through the locker door and straight into whoever was trying to help me get out. We both crashed to the floor in a tangle of arms, legs, and screams. Luckily, whoever it was, had cushioned my fall. Unfortunately, that person had also just seen me go straight through a solid metal locker door. I looked up, trying to ready myself with an explanation when I saw familiar brown hair falling over dark chocolate eyes.

"You? You just…? Did you see what you just did?" the guy from last night was picking his head up from the floor and looking at me with an odd expression of confusion, relief, and excitement.

"Uh… what do you mean? I just fell out of the locker," I stammered.

"Yeah, right through the door!" he smiled. His smile was nice, warm, and comforting. I found myself lost for a second in it.

"You're crazy. I don't know what you're talking about," I argued, my heart pounding like crazy.

"Yes you do. You just fell though the locker like you fell through the wall last night. And you're crushing me," he squirmed a bit and I realized I was still laying on top of him.

"I didn't do anything," I sat up, straddling him, scared to let him up in case he ran off to tattle on my newfound intangibility. "You don't even know me."

"No, I don't. But I do know what I saw, and what I saw was that you're a mutant," he continued to smile as he, too, sat up. "Like me."

"What are you talking about? Who are you?" I scrambled off him, fear suddenly creeping in. That word. Mutant. The same thing Riley had called me.

"I'm Lance, and see I have an… ability, too," he stood up and then offered me his hand. I swatted it away, standing up on my own and giving him a quizzical look.

"Ability?" I arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah. You can move through solid objects and I can… well," he looked around quickly and then balled his hands into fists. The earth suddenly moved beneath us. Out of some kind of instinct, I reached for him. Suddenly, the quakes stopped and his expression softened into concern.

"Wait… you… you can… you caused the quakes last night!" I backed away, feeling shocked and frightened, but oddly curious.

"Yeah, well, I probably should have come up with a better way to help you with Ross, but… it worked," he shrugged.

"I didn't ask for your help," I crossed my arms over my chest.

"You're welcome," he rolled his eyes. "Nice to meet you, too, Lance. My name is…"

"Did you give Ross that black eye?" I ignored his comment as I was too busy putting the pieces together.

"Yeah. The fat lip, too. But in my defense, he started it. I was just trying to go after you and make sure you were alright," he stepped closer, his eyes moving over me like they were examining me.

"I don't need a protector. I can take care of myself," I backed up.

"Oh yeah, sure. You did a crack job taking care of yourself with Ross last night, and then again today with Riley and Amy. You don't need any help at all do you, princess?" he smirked.

"Well, as you pointed out, I got out of the locker on my own. And I could have handled Ross, too," I stepped up, shoving my index finger against his chest. He didn't even budge, my finger bouncing pointlessly off the wall of muscle.

"Oh, really?" he moved even closer, our bodies just barely separated, our severe height difference causing him to tower over me. "What's a girl like you doing with a chump like him anyways?"

"Uh… well… I… uh… none of your business," I managed to get out, my mouth suddenly going as dry as the Sahara. What was it about him that was making me suddenly feel so self conscious? "Why do you care?"

"Uh… well… I… uh… none of your business," he mocked, though the smile that played at his lips wasn't vicious but playful.

"You're such a jerk," I huffed. I was a smart and witty girl. Why wasn't my brain functioning enough for a decent response?

"I'm a jerk? I've just saved your ass twice with no please or thank you and I'm a jerk?" he countered. "You could use to learn to show a little gratitude, little girl."

"ARGH! I am not a little girl, so stop calling me one! And if I wanted your help, I would say please. If I needed your help, I'd say thank you. Otherwise, just… leave me alone!" I yelled before turning on my heel to storm off.

"I'll see you around, you know, the next time I'm helping you out," his laugh rang in my ears, causing my blood to boil. "So, see you in half an hour?"

"How about never? That work for you?" I whirled around. He looked so relaxed, his eyes dancing and his mouth smiling as he leaned against the lockers casually. It was almost as if he was enjoying torturing me.

"Ooh, feisty," he held up his hands with a smirk, feigning alarm. "Kitten's got some claws."

"It's Kitty. My name is Kitty," I corrected, my hands immediately falling to my hips. "Not Kitten. Not Kitty cat. Just Kitty."

"Kitty," he said my name like he was rolling it around in his head. I could feel a blush creeping up my neck as he thoughtfully looked me over. He had me so confused, spitting out seeming insults one minute and gazing at me appreciatively the next. "It suits you."

"Really?" I cocked my head, wondering if he was being serious or if he was just setting himself up for a joke.

"Sure it does. Here pretty Kitty," he reached his arms out and called in a baby voice, answering my question quickly.

"Shove off…. Ava-Lance," I shot back, even wincing as I dubbed him with a terrible nickname.

"Wow… that was… corny," he chuckled. "What are you going to call me next? Lancelot?"

"Oh, go to hell," I groaned and started to leave. Maybe he got his rocks off teasing people, but I had enough of this. Damn, that would have been a good line to use.

"Rock you later, Kitten," he called after me, emphasizing the fact that he was purposely calling me a name I had told him not to just minutes earlier.

"It's Kitty, Sir Quakes-a-lot," I countered, shaking my head at myself at the even worse nickname. I refused to look back though. I just needed to keep walking.

"Still weak! But we'll work on it!" His laugh continued to echo down the hall as I walked away. Despite my best efforts, that laugh would echo in my head for years to come.


	4. Chapter 3

The bell rang, shocking me out of my thoughts. Of course, as much as I didn't want them to, they had settled on Lance. Lance, that was his name. He was tall, dark, and handsome, though not in the traditional sense of the cliché. I shook the image of him from my head, his dark hair falling over his deep eyes, and raced towards the gym. Stopping only briefly in the locker room to change into gym clothes, I made it out to the field only a few minutes late. Coach grumbled at me, but quickly gave me a break as she saw the apologetic look on my face and heard the snickers of the other girls. Everybody, even the teachers, knew I was terrible at sports, so the teasing grew louder as I lined up in front of the sand pit. I started to make a run for it, getting ready to practice the long jump, but stumbled over my own two feet and fell face first in the sand. The grainy, salty texture coated me and filled my mouth as the laughter, led by Riley and Amy, roared. I pulled myself up and spat out sand, while Coach pulled me aside and told me I'd get it next time.

"Let me show you how it's done, freak," Riley stepped up to the line and crouched, ready to sprint. Despite the anger bubbling up inside of me, I watched as Riley sprang forwards, racing like a gazelle and then leaping towards the sand pit with perfect form. I was just about to turn away, to groan at how unfair it was that she was so dang athletic, when the ground came up to meet her. My eyes grew wide and my jaw dropped as I watched the sand pit rise to knock her down on her back. Riley screamed, and I noticed that Amy was going back and forth from staring in horror at her friend and glaring at me. I looked around, knowing it was Lance. There was no one else that could command the ground, and no other reason for something to happen. On the roof of the school, I spied three boys, one waving at me with a smug grin I could spot even this far away. I turned to run, heading for the roof, ready to tear into him and give him a piece of my mind, ignoring the flattery I felt that he had stalked me and used his powers to give that show-off Riley a taste of her own medicine. No, I didn't need his help and I wouldn't let that cute smirk stop me from chewing him out.

"Hi," I was stopped on my war path by a tall bombshell with long cherry locks. Her smile was friendly enough, but she looked so preppy and the confidence she moved and spoke with set off alarms in my head. Popular.

"I didn't have anything to do with Riley," I argued, stepping around her and into the nearest room, the auditorium. She followed me, despite the efforts I made to evade her.

"I never said you did. Are you okay?" she asked, her long strides easily catching her up to me.

"Yeah, I'm just great," I rolled my eyes, stopping to turn and look at her. What could she possibly want from me?

"That wasn't very convincing," she offered kindly. "I'm Jean. I'd love to talk to you about… well… what's been happening with you recently."

"What do you mean?" I looked at her skeptically. Did she know about me falling through walls recently? How could she? I doubted that if she did, she would be speaking so calmly with me.

"You've recently discovered that you have a new… talent, right? You don't really understand it, you can't control it, and it's really scary," as Jean went on I started to feel like she was pulling the thoughts right out of my brain.

"How do you know this stuff?" I looked at her amazed. How on earth could someone like her get someone like me?

"Well, because I'm using my power. I'm a telepath, which means…" she started to explain.

"You're in my head?! Get out! Just… leave me alone!" I ran from her, tears starting to stream down my face. I had made my way out of the auditorium and down the hall towards my locker, until I ran into something solid.

"I told you I'd be helping you out again," I looked up to see Lance's smile deflate. "Kitty? What's wrong?"

"I… then Riley… and then you… and now she's… I want her out of my head!" I managed to get out between sobs. His arms, which had caught me when I bumped into him, keeping me from falling, were now around me protectively, holding me to his chest. Without thinking, I balled my hands into his shirt, clinging to him, letting the cotton mop up my tears.

"What do you mean she's in your head?" he cooed, though I felt him become tense.

"That girl, Jean, she's a telepath," I looked up into his frown. "She knows… she knows what I can do and she knows what I'm thinking and…"

"Who's Jean?" he smoothed my hair back, his brow furrowing with confusion and concern.

"She followed me in. I was coming to yell at…" I stopped, realizing that I was letting the same guy I had been ready to tell off hold me so tenderly.

"Kitty?" Lance's eyes searched mine.

"You!" I pushed back, shoving my hands against him to push myself out of his embrace. "I was coming to yell at you! To tell you to leave me alone!"

"Whoa, calm down. I'm trying to help you, remember?" he stepped towards me, his arms reaching, but I pushed them away.

"You're not helping! Riley thinks I did that! She accused me of starting the quakes last night, too!" I jabbed my finger at him. "If anything, you made it worse!"

"Wait, Riley thinks you did that? Why?" his hands dropped to his sides and he ignored the finger I pushed into his ribs.

"Because that's what Ross told her," I snapped.

"I'm going to kill that bastard," he shook his head angrily.

"No, you won't. I'll just get blamed for that, too," I sighed. "Plus, how many times do I have to tell you that I don't need a bodyguard?"

"Hm," he studied me for a moment. "How about when you can take care of yourself, Kitten?"

"Kitty!" I dug my finger deeper into him. "Why can't you get it right?"

"Because you're so cute when you're angry," he grabbed my wrist and bent down in one swift movement, his lips brushing against mine. Sure, I was shocked and even a little bit outraged, but for whatever reason my body immediately reacted. My hands grabbed at his face, my body pressed into his, and I kissed back. I thought… well, ok, I wasn't really thinking at all, but I was surprised when he jerked back.

"Lance?" I looked up at him, feeling the hold he had tightening on my wrist, trying to figure out what had happened. I followed his gaze behind me, turning to see Jean standing there.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," Jean blushed, "but I need to talk to you Katherine."

"How do you know my name? Get out of my head!" I could feel the tears start to build again.

"I'm not reading your mind. Look, I just want to talk," she spoke calmly and softly, despite the fact that I was yelling and crying.

"About what? How I'm a freak?" I spat.

"You're not a freak. I'm here with the professor of a school that can help you with your gift. We talked with your parents and they seem to think it'd be a good idea for you to come with us and learn control over it," she explained.

"Go? To some mutant school?" Lance interjected. I had almost forgotten he was there, besides the grip he kept on my arm until he spoke up. "Ship her off like she has some kind of disease?"

"Why would I need to go with you to some special school?" I tried to ignore Lance's comment and focus on getting my answers.

"To learn everything there is to know about your ability. Why you have it, how to control it, when and where to use it…" she started to tick off the reasons on her fingers.

"I didn't need some fancy school to learn control," Lance huffed.

"Lance," I elbowed him, but he just rolled his eyes at me.

"Excuse me?" Jean looked from me to him.

"He um, has an… ability, too," I offered.

"Well, you would be welcome to come, too," Jean offered.

"Who said I wanted to go?" he snorted.

"Lance!" I elbowed him again.

"I've heard of these types of places, Kitty. Your parents send you away to try to fix you, not help you," he whispered, lowering his head to my ear. The way his hot breath tickled my skin reminded me of his lips on mine just minutes earlier, the taste of mint with a hint of tobacco still mingling in my mouth. I pushed myself to focus.

"Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing. I mean, aren't you scared of what you can do?" I admitted. He dropped my wrist like my skin was burning him and gaped at me, his eyes shone with hurt.

"We're not like that," Lance and I looked up as Jean folded her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, right," he scoffed.

"No, really…" she started to move towards us.

"I've heard enough. I'm out of here," Lance cut her off with a wave of his hand and turned to leave.

"Lance!" I yelled after him, but he didn't turn back.

"Just let him go. Our school isn't the right fit for everybody and we don't want to force anyone," Jean put her hand on my shoulder.

"I'm not so sure it's the right fit for me," I turned to face her.

"I understand. I was hesitant at first, too. But, now, I can't imagine my life any other way," Jean smiled, her eyes staring off into space like she was daydreaming.

"I just, this is too much," I turned and ran off in the direction Lance had gone. I oddly felt like I could trust him, and he was the only one who seemed to know what I was going through. I mean, Jean was nice and all, but she was obviously not an outcast or anything, so I just didn't feel like she got it. I saw him just as I turned a corner, he was going outside.

"Lance!" I called after him, he paused at the door. "Hey, can we talk about this?"

"Talk about what?" he shrugged and we fell into step together, walking around the school building.

"Well, for one, the mutant school thing. It really set you off, and I just, I don't know much about this stuff," I started to ramble.

"Kitty, I… I can't talk about this," he shook his head. "It brings up some other stuff that I don't want to talk about."

"Oh," I bit my lip wondering what must be upsetting him so much. "Well, then maybe we could talk about something else. Like… you kissing me?"

"Uh," Lance stopped, turning to lean against the school and look at me. "About that…"

"Yeah, it was um," I paused. "Well, you kind of caught me off guard."

"I, well, I…" he trailed off. "Did I hurt you?"

"What?" and then I followed his eyes down to my wrist. I was unconsciously rubbing the wrist he had grabbed with my other hand. "Oh, no. I'm fine, I just…"

"Sorry," he frowned. "Here, let me see."

"Lance?" I studied him while he gently turned my wrist, frowning at the red marks from his fingers.

"Hm?" he brought my wrist to his mouth, lightly kissing the tender skin.

"Um," I started to try to think of something intelligent to say, but then he pulled me to him and lowered his mouth to mine again. We kissed for quite a while, his arms coming around my waist and mine settling on his shoulders, pressing our bodies tightly together. His back was pressed against the wall, but then, we slipped through it. I fell on top of him, our heads cracking together as we hit the ground.

"Ow!" he groaned, mumbling a few choice words.

"Did we just…?" I looked around the room, there was a desk, a big swivel office chair and a large book case. I'd only been in this office once or twice, when being rewarded for some important school thing, and I recognized it immediately. We were in the principal's office.

"Fall through the wall?" he moaned. "Yes. And now I see why it freaks you out so much. It definitely feels weird. And you're crushing me again."

"Oh, sorry," I rolled off him and then picked myself up. He stood up, too and I watched as he looked around the room, figuring out where we were.

"Huh," he walked around, examining some little trinkets on the bookshelf. "I've never been in here without getting yelled at."

"You get in trouble a lot I take it," I watched him nervously as he picked up a book and then put it back. "Not surprised."

"Oh and let me guess, you've never been in here?" he rolled his eyes.

"Sure I have," I swatted him playfully and his eyes narrowed. "But not because I'm in trouble."

"Figures," he chuckled. "So, I guess nobody knows you're not exactly little miss perfect. Well, except for me."

"You don't know anything," I shook my head.

"Oh, I think I know quite a lot. You're not this little goody-goody you pretend to be all day. You prefer to let loose, but you're scared of how it feels or what people will think," he paused before turning and looking at me square in the eyes. "And you're freaked out by this ability you have because it means you're not perfect and you can't hide that fact anymore. Sound about right?"

"Oh yeah? And what about you?" I countered. "You're not such the tough guy you pretend to be all the time. You don't talk to anyone about anything, at least not anything important or real or tough. And you hate yourself for your ability, but you refuse to admit. So what do you think about that?"

"I think we can skip a lot of talking to get know each other and go back to making out," he smirked.

"I think you hide behind your little jokes," I crossed my arms.

"What makes you think I was joking?" he moved forward to tower over me. "Pretty Kitty."

"ARGH! I said…!" I started to protest but then he captured my mouth with his again and I forgot all about the nickname.


	5. Chapter 4

The kiss was earth shattering. Literally. We broke apart, the quakes startling us. But then he wrapped his arms tighter around me, protectively.

"Lance?" I narrowed my eyes, starting to pull out of his grip.

"This isn't me, Kitty," his eyes darted around the room before falling on mine. "I swear!"

"An earthquake? In Northbrook?" I burrowed in closer to him. "What do we do?"

"We need to get in the doorway," he commanded.

"LANCE!" I pointed to the large desk that was being sent our way. We both looked left and right for a way to go, but the bookcase and office chair had us boxed in on one side and the windows were shattering on the other, leaving us with no good escape option.

"Can you phase us through it?" he looked quickly between me and the desk.

"I can't just turn it on and off!" I followed his eyes darting for any possible way out of this. I could feel him move around me, wrapping himself as best as he could to form a shield. This was bad.

"Yes you can. Concentrate," his voice was surprisingly steady and gentle, which helped to calm me down. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes and willing myself to become intangible. I wrapped my arms tighter around Lance, resting my forehead against his and focusing on keeping contact with him. After several minutes had gone by, I felt the ground still. I opened my eyes to find Lance and I still standing, our bodies pressed tightly together. He was smiling at me, letting out a sigh of relief before I looked to see the desk slammed against the wall behind us. Before I could stop myself, I was crying again, soaking Lance's t-shirt.

"It's okay, Kitten," he squeezed me to him, pressing a kiss on my forehead. "It's okay. We're okay."

"It's over?" I sniffled.

"Yeah," he rubbed my back. "How do you feel?"

"Tingly," I mumbled into his chest. "Both scared and relieved."

"You were amazing," he smiled weakly. "You know that?"

"I wasn't," I shook my head. "I was freaked."

"But you did it anyways," he tipped my chin up with his finger, forcing me to look at him. "That's what matters Pretty Kitty."

"You think?" I watched as a worried expression settled on his brow. "What?"

"I've called you two nicknames and you haven't yelled at me," his eyes danced with laughter while his hands smoothed the hair back from my face. "That really shook you up, huh?"

"We don't' exactly have earthquakes in Northbrook, Lance. Of course I was freaked!" I rolled my eyes and pulled back a little. We had gone from practically strangers, to yelling, to… what is this. I tilted my head back to ask him, but stopped when I saw his sad eyes on mine and a frown across his face."What? What is it?"

"I didn't know how much it scared you," his whisper was so soft I could barely make it out. "How much I scared you."

"Lance," I finally released his shirt from my fists. He pulled back before I could react. He thought I was scared of him? Scared of the guy that had been prepared to use his body as human bubble wrap? Scared of the guy that helped me not feel quite so on edge about this whole powers thing? Scared of the guy that believed in me, the real me, not some perfect illusion?

"I should go. Maybe you should go to that special school. Get the help you need," his jaw was set, making him looked determined, but his eyes gave him away. They fluttered around the ground, like he was trying so hard not to look at me.

"But," I started to grab him and yank him back, explain that I wasn't scared of him, that if anything he made me feel safe. But I never got a chance.

"Katherine!" the door flung open and there were my parents with Jean.

"Dad? Mom?" I wasn't sure what was more shocking, that they were here or that they were here with Jean.

"Are you okay, honey?" I focused on my mom's face, the dark circles under her eyes, as she spoke. Mom was all about appearances, so for her to leave the house so obviously frazzled meant things were really bad.

"I'm fine," I shot a look at Lance from the corner of my eyes, but he was busy shuffling his feet, trying to look invisible.

"Good. Let's go discuss… things… at home," My dad paused, though I wasn't sure if it was because he didn't know what word to use to describe my newfound skill or because he was studying Lance.

"But I," again I was cut off, but this time by quakes. I automatically reached out, tightly gripping Lance's arm, as I watched my parents cling to each other.

"I swear it's not me," Lance finally turned to look at me as his arm snaked around my waist and pulled me towards him. I wanted to tell him I knew, but other voices chimed in, reminding me we weren't alone.

"What does he mean? Who is this?" My dad's frown dug deeper into his skin, his wrinkles becoming more pronounced.

"Katherine?" My mother's voice sounded so small compared to his. It felt odd seeing such a role reversal in my parents. Usually my dad was the quiet one who I got along with easily while my mom was boisterous and demanding.

"Aftershock," Jean nodded, as if she was conferring with someone. "Come to the door frame!"

"Kitty," Lance pointed up to the ceiling, a large crack tearing the wall between where my parents stood with Jean by the door frame and Lance I stood closer to the wall we had slipped through minutes earlier before the earth had begun to move below us.

"Can you make it stop?" I followed the lines of the crevasse that was forming, noticing that it was almost circular, like if the ceiling completely broke apart, the walls around us would cave in.

"I don't know. I've always just started them and they stop on their own," his eyes darted around. "But I'll try."

"It's working!" After a couple of seconds, the quakes seemed to soften a bit.

"I can't hold it," he groaned.

"Just a little longer?" I looked at his gritted teeth, his eyes clenched shut, his knuckles turning white as he bore his nails into his skin. His whole body was shaking as if he was pulling the movement from the earth into him. I did my best to cling to him as his body jerked around like a jack hammer against me.

"We're going to need another way out. I think if I work with the quakes I can make a hole in the wall for us to get out through," his eyes popped open rapidly and focused on the exact spot in the wall we had slipped through earlier.

"But my parents," I looked back to the doorframe. I noticed Jean also had her eyes closed, and she seemed to be focusing with great difficulty. My parents huddled together near her, watching the cracks in the walls and ceilings spread.

"They have to hurry. We have to hurry," Lance held a palm out towards the wall, focusing the energy at it to break through and leave a gap wide enough for us all to slip through.

"Mom! Dad! Hurry!" I called, pointing out the escape route.

"Katherine, come here!" My father yelled. He was leaning against the door frame, my mother curled up into him.

"Maybe we should just go to the doorway?" I offered weakly.

"I don't think so, Kitten. We need to get out of here," Lance grunted. I threw my body tighter around him, willing my strength into him.

"He's right. We need to move," Jean nodded as her lips staid firmly shut.

"I can't hold this much longer," Lance moaned, his body shaking even faster. "Come on!"

"Dad!" I screamed as the giant bookcase fell towards him. Suddenly the earth surged in just the right way and the bookcase fell back against the wall.

"Let's go!" Lance called out and I reminded myself to ask if he had caused that once we were all safely out of here. Jean herded my parents over, an odd bubble encompassing the three of them from the bits of plaster falling all around us. I moved away from Lance and joined them through the hole he had made to outside. My parents collapsed to the ground while Jean mumbled something about contacting the professor. I turned back to see Lance moving to crawl out of the school just as the wall collapsed in front of him.


	6. Chapter 5

Without thinking, I ran towards the building, willing my body to feel that weird tingle sensation. I slipped through the rocks to find him braced against a wall.

"Lance!" I called out before grabbing his arm and pulling him through the rubble. The second I knew we were clear from the crumbling school, I fell against him, my body exhausted from the drain of using this new power so much.

"Thanks for coming back for me," I smiled at the feeling of Lance's lips across my forehead. "Even though you shouldn't have."

"And thanks for catching that bookcase that almost fell on my dad," I turned towards him. "So…"

"Katherine!" I pulled away from Lance at the sound of my dad's voice.

"Oh, thank heavens you're alright! When we saw you go back in there…" mom trailed off as her body was wracked with sobs. Jean awkwardly patted her back and tried to tell her it was alright, but mom was inconsolable for the moment.

"What were you thinking? You could have been killed!" Dad roared. "Not to mention what were you doing in the principal's office? You should have been in class! We were looking all over for you!"

"Dad…" I tried to cut in, but he wasn't done yelling.

"I told you to come to the doorway and you didn't listen! I told you to stay home from school today and you didn't listen! What is wrong with you today?" He fumed.

"Um, sir. It's my fault. It's all my fault. I'm very sorry for any trouble I may have caused you and your family. If there's anything I can do to make up for it, you name it," Lance cut in, stepping between us and offering his hand to shake. "I'm sure you'll want to discuss all of this with my father and I'll arrange something immediately. I also understand that you want to send Kitty to a special school where she can be helped and I fully support whatever decision you make there. If it's of any help, my powers manifested about a year ago, so I, and I'm sure my father as well, are happy to do anything we can to help you and your family through this."

"Kitty? Powers? What?" Dad stammered, ignoring the hand Lance held out firmly. "Who are you?"

"Dad, this is Lance…" I trailed off realizing I didn't even know his last name.

"Alvers. Lance Alvers, sir. Pleasure to meet you, though I wish it could be under better circumstances," he swallowed loudly, still awkwardly holding his hand out.

"How do you know my daughter?" Dad's eyes narrowed.

"Dad!" I glared, trying to point out the hand Lance was still holding out, though it had begun to shake.

"Well, um, we met, um…" Lance's eyes darted around nervously, his hand finally returning to his side. "At school! Of course, we met here at school. She fell through a locker using her powers and I happened to be there."

"Fell through a locker? What were you doing in a locker? Did people see? Oh, Katherine!" Dad ran a hand down his face, thoroughly exasperated with me and the whole situation.

"It's fine, Daddy. Really. I'll explain at home," I patted his arm, giving Lance a shrug and a weak smile.

"Yes, home. Let's go home. The professor is waiting after all," He looked at Jean and my mom before turning back to Lance. "Uh, I, Kitty, we, you. Oh, I don't know." Dad took Mom by the arm and led her away, leaving Jean with Lance and me.

"Well that went… crud," Lance sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "I just got you in a lot of trouble, didn't I?"

"It's been a long day. Just, don't worry about it," I shook my head, wanting to reassure him better than that, but I was so confused and jumbled I didn't know what to do. "Come on. Let's go meet this professor guy."

"I don't… I don't think it's a good idea for me to… go," Lance frowned at the ground.

"The professor would really like to meet you," Jean cut in. "We're not sure why we weren't able to pinpoint you and your powers before, but we'd like to take the time to find out."

"I'm not a lab rat," Lance muttered.

"Well, no," Jean offered quickly. "We'd help you. We'd work with you to help you gain better control over your powers and learn all sorts of things about them. It's really a special place and you'll love it. I promise."

"Look," Lance shook his head. "I've heard about these places before and I'm just not interested. Now, if you'll excuse me, I gotta go. I'm in enough trouble already and I really just… don't want to deal with you."

"But," Jean started but he cut her off with a wave of his hand and turned to leave.

"But Lance!" I called him, but he didn't turn around or stop walking away. Jean put a hand on my shoulder.

"Like I said before, it's not for everyone," she explained.

"But why would he want me to go when he's so adamant against going himself?" I thought as I watched him leave.

"Some people have a hard time accepting that they need help and that they deserve it," I spun around to face her as she spoke. "Oops. Sorry. I'm still working on controlling it."

"Yeah, I know how it feels. But he helped me. He got me to relax and concentrate and I was able to conjure up my powers at will. What if he's the only one who gets it?" I asked aloud. "Who gets me?" I thought.

"Well, Professor Xavier, Storm, and Wolverine are all very practiced with their powers, so I'm sure they can help you," her confident smile slipped from her face as she followed my gaze to where Lance had disappeared. "And who knows? Maybe he'll change his mind."

"Sure," I nodded, trying not to show that I didn't believe any of what she had said. "Let's go meet the professor." Jean led the way and my body followed her to her parents' car while my mind, and if I had been honest with myself at the time, probably my heart, followed Lance.


	7. Chapter 6

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the long wait on this update. Thanks to a busy time at work, a nuptial celebration, a grieving period, some demanding social obligations, and the many other projects that I either felt the need to start or come back to; my attention was pulled away. Hopefully, I'll be able to update more frequently in the future, but unfortunately, and with the knowledge of what is already planned and knowing how easily plans can become even more chaotic, I wouldn't count on it. Thanks for being loyal and patient readers!

We went back to the house and it was quickly decided that I was going to the Xavier institute. Dad kept rubbing his head and muttering the word mutant to himself as if trying to decide if it was a good thing or a bad thing. I think he just wanted to pretend like none of it ever happened. Mom stayed by my side and listened intently to everything Professor Xavier, a kindly, older, bald man in the fanciest wheelchair I'd ever seen, had to say about being a mutant and his school. She seemed to be sold because of how enthusiastic Jean, the telepathic red-head, talked about her life at the school and the good relationship she still kept with her family.

So I packed up all my belongings, had an awkward goodbye with my parents, and hopped on a private jet, which Professor Xavier piloted, to go to a mutant school. Goodbye home, goodbye Northbrook, and goodbye Lance. It was weird, because we didn't know each other all that well. I mean, I had just met him last night. But when we talked, I felt like we had been together for years. As much as I didn't want to admit it, especially to him, he had been right about everything he had said about me before the earthquake. Worst of all, he knew he was right.

Because I was lost in my thoughts, I didn't pay too much attention to the view outside. I had barely said goodbye to Northbrook when I was told we were landing. Jean escorted me around the mansion as my bags were going to be taken to my room. It was a completely overwhelming tour. The mansion was huge! It already looked massive on the outside from the pictures Professor Xavier had shown us back at my parents' house, but there were several underground levels. The hallways were a complicated maze that didn't even somewhat resemble a grid system, so I was sure I would get lost. I thought about asking for a map, but I was too horrified of the new students thinking I was a loser to say anything. Only Jean seemed to have any idea of my geek status back in Northbrook, so I decided to make an effort to reinvent myself as someone these other students at the Institute would like. My parents had made me promise to keep my grades at their very best, so I would still have to somehow play off my nerdy skills and still come off cool. It was going to be a challenge, and I wasn't sure I felt up to it at the moment. Luckily, the tour ended at my room and I was able to shut myself off for the rest of the night. I immediately crashed on one of the two beds in the room, thankful that I didn't have to share it. For now, Jean had said. None of us had to share rooms, for now.

It was a fitful night of sleep. I dreamt that I was falling through my bed, through the floor, through the mansion, and falling out of a locker door into a familiar face. Lance. I watched him get up and walk away. I wanted to run after him, scream, do anything to catch his attention, but my feet were stuck and my voice suddenly gone. He kept walking away, never turning back.

I woke up in a cold sweat with his face still haunting my thoughts. Why had he been so adamant about not coming to the Institute? After catching a few more hours of sleep, I got up and began to try to find my way to the kitchen for breakfast. I had skipped dinner last night after a skimpy lunch and was absolutely starving. As I tried to maneuver through the many hallways, opening up several doors without any luck, I was careful to watch out for anything that seemed off. Something about Lance's determination to never end up in a place like this made me concerned that behind any door was a room where experiments were taking place on humans with special powers, mutants, like myself. Each time, I breathed a sigh of relief as the door swung open to show a bedroom, a bathroom, a game room, and several other normal rooms.

I was just starting to think I was lost and Lance was crazy when I finally found stairs. I followed them down to a simple corridor that led down to two large metal doors. There were no handles, but I saw a control panel with a keypad. Password protected secret room. If there was anything weird going on here, it would be in that room. I quickly willed myself to feel that tingly intangible feeling and pushed my head through the door. It was thick, so I had to step my whole body through, but once I was in, I immediately had to duck back out. A laser beam had shot just over my head. With a lot more caution, I ducked through again, this time catching an eyeful. A somewhat short, but rather stalky and hairy man was jumping, gliding, and dodging several more lasers as well as a rather extensive collection of other types of weaponry. He had three long metal claws that extended from each hand and with them he was able to slice off offending weapons, swing around the room in unthinkable ways, and fend off lasers. I was horrified. With a scream, I ducked back out of the room and backed directly into something. When I turned I found a tall guy who was probably only a year or two older than me.

"You must be the new student. Katherine, right? I'm Scott," the boy held out his hand. He had brown hair that fell neatly around his face, which was chiseled with a strong jaw. His eyes were hidden by some red-tinted shades, but I had a feeling that if I removed them I would find a very intense gaze. He was obviously fit, and he was definitely polite. Maybe Scott could help clear my mind of some other tall, brown-haired boys with intense gazes.

"Kitty," I answered as we shook hands.

"Well, Kitty, it's nice to meet you. Hope Logan didn't scare you off," he gestured to the room behind me.

"Logan?" I eyed his mouth as it cracked into a wide smile.

"Logan, aka Wolverine. He's the guy in the danger room right now. He's kind of intense, but I promise training sessions are not like that," he chuckled.

"Logan? Wolverine? Danger room? Training sessions?" my eyes got wider with each new question that popped into my mind.

"Oh, you haven't gotten _that_ tour, yet. Well, I just put my foot in my mouth, huh? Maybe I should take you to the professor," Scott gestured down the hallway and we were on our way.

"I was just looking for the kitchen. I haven't really figured out how to get around here," I told him as we reached the elevator.

"Yeah, this place should come with a map, right? But don't worry, in less than a week you'll know every nook and cranny of this place," he smiled. His agreement and his easy manner should have put me at ease, but I found myself missing the banter and the arguments that had flowed so easily with Lance. It was silly, really, but it was more interesting to fight than to agree. I nodded politely, which seemed to end the conversation. We walked together in silence until we finally came to the kitchen, where Jean was sitting with a bowl of cereal.

"Hi, Kitty! Hi, Scott," I looked back and forth between the two of them and saw a noticeable blush creep up Scott's neck while Jean's smile widened. "Want me to grab you a bowl?"

"Sure," I sat down at the large table and watched with amusement as Jean and Scott danced around each other. It didn't take me but five minutes to realize that he was obsessed with her and she didn't have the slightest clue. What I couldn't figure out, even though I observed them all through my cereal and on the way to see the Professor, was if Jean saw Scott as anything more than a buddy.

We got to the Professor's office and I was quickly introduced to Ms. Munroe, also known as Storm; Logan, also known as Wolverine; and Kurt, also known as Nightcrawler. It was also explained that Scott was also known as Cyclops and I would also be called Shadowcat. I almost asked why Jean and the Professor didn't have a second name, but everyone else seemed to accept it so simply, that I decided to just go along with it. The idea of a fuzzy blue kid that could disappear and reappear in a cloud of smoke, however, was going to take some getting used to. Then again, so was the idea of constantly living with two people who could easily read my thoughts, a woman who could change the weather on a whim, a basically indestructible man who was constantly sniffing around like a dog, and a kid that was two years older than me at most who would be barking out orders. After the introductions, Xavier led the way to the Danger room and lectured me about being a mutant, controlling powers, and generally behaving well in the world. He talked on and on about how it was important that as mutants were revealed to the world that we show them there was nothing to fear. He likened our situation to many other instances such as religious persecution, civil rights and women's suffrage, just to name a few. The overwhelming sense of responsibility began to weigh on me more and more as we neared the danger room. By the time we all crowded into the control center, I was on the verge of losing it.

"Now, if Wolverine and Storm would be so kind as to give a demonstration," Xavier nodded to the other adults who quickly left the room. After several minutes, the two entered below wearing spandex uniforms. I raised an eyebrow at Jean who shrugged and then looked back below. I watched in horror as the blank room sprung to life once more, several weapons coming out and aiming straight at the adults that were supposed to be chaperones and teachers for us four students. Storm flew up into the air in the midst of thick dark clouds, sending lightning bolts at any weapon that aimed her way while Logan roamed about like a wild animal on all fours as he slashed, chewed, ripped, and ducked through all the weapons thrown his way. After a while, Xavier turned the room off and the instructors joined us again the room. "Of course, your training sessions will be much less intense and much more safe, but this is the general idea of the use that the danger room will provide. It will give you plenty of training to prepare you for real world situations that you may need to face to help keep the peace and save your fellow humans, mutants or not, from a multitude of dangers. Your team will be a last resort, as we will try to use non-violent actions first, our adult team second, and any other measures we can provide before you are called to action. Even when you are asked to become involved, I want to make it quite clear that violence is always a last resort, and even then, we do our absolute best to avoid using our skills to cause any harm to people, no matter their intentions for us. Understood?"

"Yes, Sir," Scott answered formally, his quick response reminding me of a soldier.

"Yes, Professor," Jean smiled at us, her calm actions trying to put us at ease.

"Ja," Kurt offered with a weak smile of his own. All heads turned to me, but I couldn't find the notion to speak. I nodded and tried not to scream and run away.

"It's a little overwhelming, I know, but you can talk to me about anything at anytime, Katherine," Xavier nodded.

"Ja, Keety. Don't worry," Kurt popped from his spot and reappeared next to me. "We're all here with you."

"Uh… can I go now?" I looked around the room wondering how on earth this was all going to be okay. "I'm wiped."

"Of course, Katherine. Get some rest. You'll be attending your new school tomorrow," Xavier smiled affectionately. "Jean, would you make sure she knows where everything is that she might need?"

"Can do," Jean smiled and linked her arm through mine. Jean chatted the entire time we walked from the danger room to my new room, stopping to point out the kitchen, the shared girls' bathroom, and where we meet for carpool to school. I mostly zoned out though, thinking over everything that had just happened since we landed at the Institute, especially the words Xavier had spoken. I was terrified, but worst of all, I had no one to talk to about it. My parents were certain that this was the right move for me and the other students seemed completely at ease with the arrangements Xavier had made for them. The only person I could think of that would understand was somewhere back in Northbrook and I had no way to contact him. When Jean finally left me alone in my room, I crashed on the bed that I had claimed as mine and tried to sleep.

Of course, sleep didn't come easy yet again, and when it finally did, a new ad more terrifying nightmare crept in. I was in my pj's, standing in the middle of the danger room when it suddenly came to life. I screamed as weapons suddenly sprang out at me and willed myself to phase through them. The danger room transformed into Northbrook's high school and the weapons disappeared, leaving Riley and her usual tag-alongs instead. They chanted mutant as the mob surrounded me and I once again willed myself to phase and fell through them only to land with a thud into something not hard, but not so soft either. I looked up to see thoughtful brown eyes piercing mine.

"We really got to stop meeting like this, Kitten," Lance chuckled.

"Lance!" I screeched, holding him tightly against me, my eyes closing as tears tried to escape down my cheeks. I knew somewhere in my subconscious that this was just a dream, but it felt so good to hold him I didn't care.

"Where you going, Kit Cat?" he called after me and I opened my eyes to find that I was phasing through him, phasing through the floor, phasing through the ground. I couldn't stop phasing and it was scaring me. I willed myself to become solid, to be back in Lance's arms, but I kept falling and falling and falling.

I woke with a loud scream as someone reached out and touched me.

"Kitty? Are you okay?" I looked up to see Jean standing over me. I was still laying in my bed at the Institute and her red hair was falling in front of her concerned but sleepy green eyes.

"Jean? What's happening?" I rubbed my eyes and looked around to reassure myself of what had and hadn't happened.

"You were dreaming, I guess. I heard you screaming and came in here to check on you," Jean frowned and perched on the edge of my bed. "Want to talk about it?"

"I… uh… I don't remember," I lied, focusing my eyes on the window across the room. I thought I saw a flicker of movement, but I figured my over-active imagination was running especially high thanks to the terrifying dream I had just had. "Sorry for waking you. I think I just need to adjust to a new place."

"No worries. I'm sure it's hard being so far from home in a new place. Probably doesn't help that it's a big maze, you just met a bunch of new people that also have powers – a thing you just discovered recently – entirely different from yours, and all this talk about us protecting others from danger," Jean smiled warmly.

"I'm still processing," I nodded, happy to be honest about something. "And I just miss home."

"Hm," Jean pursed her lips. "Home, huh?"

"Yeah. You know," I cocked my head to the side. "My parents, my room, my home."

"Your boyfriend?" Jean raised her eyebrows.

"What?" I almost choked. "I don't… no…I don't have a boyfriend."

"Right," Jean rolled her eyes as she stood up to leave. "Night, Kitty."

"Night," I grumbled back while she slipped out of the room. I knew she wasn't in my head, because I would have felt her pushing in and flipping through my thoughts. Jean wasn't as practiced as Xavier, who I was sure had slipped into my head unnoticed several times since I had met the man. No, if Jean knew what I had dreamed about or what was on my mind it was pure instinct. Sighing, I tossed and turned on the bed for a bit, trying to get comfortable again. It was going to be extremely difficult to live any sort of double life that I was used to in the mansion with two telepaths and the human smell detector around. The perfect Kitty Pryde would have to be on duty twenty-four seven from now on.


	8. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:** Here's a short update. I'm going on a trip soon, so I don't know how much updating I'll be doing before/after.

It had now been three days since I had slept well, and it was starting to take its toll. I woke to the alarm and fiddled around like a zombie, trying to find the shared girls' bathroom in the hallway and then trying to find my own room again once I had cleaned up. When I was finally dressed and ready, I raced down to the kitchen, which I luckily was able to find just in time to grab a power bar as Jean shoved me out the door. The boys were waiting in the car, Scott was tapping impatiently on the steering wheel while Kurt's tail punched at the radio, searching through several stations until finally stopping at one that claimed to play all the latest hits. When we showed up, Scott ordered Kurt into the back, and opened up the passenger door for Jean. He explained it was a seniority thing that he got to drive and she got the front, but I rolled my eyes at him to let him know I knew what was up. Whether he got the message or just thought I was being a snobby kid, I'm not sure, but he was quiet for the entire ride to school. I was stuck in the back with Kurt who talked my ear off. He kept trying to tell jokes and lighten the mood, but I'm not exactly a morning person, and I was in a generally foul mood because of all the changes I'd recently been through. I did notice that he wasn't blue and furry all over, except for the tail he was busy trying to tuck in his pants. When I mentioned this, Kurt proudly showed me what looked like a watch and explained that it made him appear to look like any of us, but if anyone touched him, they would be able to tell he was furry.

"See?" He held his arm out to me as Scott parked the car. "I'm still a lovable fur ball."

"Um, Jean? Where do I go to get my class schedule?" I slid as far as I could to my side of the backseat and tapped her on the shoulder. I felt kind of guilty for blowing off the poor kid, but he still really freaked me out. I had never met anyone that was a different color, let alone as hairy as a pet. I was going to need time.

"The Professor went ahead and took care of everything. Here's your locker information, your schedule, and a map of the school. I'd take you around, but I've got a soccer team meeting. Scott can help you and Kurt, though," Jean smiled as she handed me the paperwork. Then she was gone, racing for what I supposed was the soccer fields.

"Alright," Scott shouldered his backpack and locked up the car once we had all scrambled out. "So you two are both new, so do you want a full tour of the school or should I just get you to your lockers and your first class?"

"Vatever sounds gut. Vat do you vant to do, Keety?" Kurt shrugged. I barely noticed what the boys were talking about though as I saw a tall figure with a familiar mop of brown hair slip into the school.

"Uh, I think this map will do. I'll catch up with you guys later," I spat out before running to catch up. I'm sure if I had looked back I would have found Scott scratching his head trying to understand girls and Kurt looking disappointed, but I was too focused to even think about it. Once in the school, I caught a glimpse of him rounding a corner and had to shove my way through the crowd of students to try to catch up. After following him through a maze for quite a while, I finally turned a corner to find him leaning against a locker, his eyes trained on the floor.

"Lance?" I tried to breathe in calmly and keep my pace casual.

"That'd be my name. What's it to you?" I saw his eyes shift to me for a split second before returning to the ground. He shifted his body, as if he wanted to push away from the lockers and move towards me, but wouldn't allow himself to.

"Um, it's me?" I reached out and brushed my fingers down his arm. "Kitty?"

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" he grumbled.

"Are you serious?" I huffed. "Kitty? From Northbrook? We survived an earthquake together?"

"I tend to rock a lot of girls' worlds," he smirked. "But I'm sure it was real special, Kitten."

"KITTY!" I screeched.

"Yeah, whatever," he slouched against the locker and crossed his arms. I studied his face for a split second and saw that while his jaw was firmly set, his eyes gave off a hint of something. Guilt?

"What are you even doing here? I thought you wouldn't go to the Institute?" I shoved my finger at his chest, but he didn't move. What was going on with him?

"Still won't," he sighed and raked a hand through his hair.

"Then why are you here?" I bit my bottom lip and pushed back the tears that were starting to form.

"Got to shake things up," he chuckled just before the bell rang. With that, he pushed off from the lockers and started down the hallway. I scowled at him before looking to my paperwork. I needed to find my locker and my first class really fast now. I found my locker number in the packet Jean had handed to me and decided to look at the lockers I was now standing in front of to figure out where I was. When I looked up, I realized that the locker Lance had been leaning against was mine all along.


	9. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: **Here's the long-awaited (?) update. Hope you like it.

I could have stood by that locker trying to figure out what had been going on with Lance for days, but it was my first day at a new school and I had to start upholding my perfect Kitty appearance for the Xavier Institute. I quickly fumbled with the lock, using the combination I found within my paperwork. Being nervous, in a rush, and somewhat preoccupied, it took me a bit longer than it should have. When I did finally open the locker, though, I hastily grabbed a few textbooks and slammed it back shut before racing down the halls. I tore through the hallways carefully avoiding colliding with anyone while also sneaking glances at the map and class schedule Jean had provided me with. I somehow managed to slip into my first class, English, just before the bell rang.

As the teacher began the class, I opened up my textbook, quickly flipping through the pages to catch up like the rest of the class. A slip of paper slipped out and I snatched at it, thinking it was a loose page from the book. Realizing it was a folded piece of notebook paper, I quickly unfolded it to find a note for me scrawled o the inside.

_Kitten-_

_Sorry for the weirdness. I'll explain later. We share Chemistry._

_-Lance_

For the rest of the class, I couldn't focus. Weirdness? Explain? Chemistry? What did any of it mean? Was he saying that his behavior at my locker was weird and he'd explain? Or maybe he meant his behavior back in Northbrook, with him freaking out about coming to the Institute, was weird and that's what he'd explain? There was so much weirdness and so much that needed explaining. That was enough to keep me preoccupied and then he had to add that last line. He kept making me furious one second and then swooping in the next, leaving me confused and frustrated.

I went through several more classes before it was finally time for lunch. I flitted around the tables nervously with my lunch tray when suddenly I saw an arm wave. It was Kurt. He was sitting at a table with Scott and was waving at me to come join them.

"Hey Keety! How is your day going?" Kurt asked as I slid in next to him.

"Okay, I guess," I forced a smile.

"It'll get easier," Scott nodded. "And you've got us."

"Speaking of which, where's Jean?" I asked, looking around the courtyard.

"I haven't seen her either," Kurt added.

"Sometimes Jean eats lunch with her team," Scott motioned over to a table filled with girls. Jean was sitting in between them all and busy chatting, but she looked up just as we all looked over and gave a smile.

"So, um, Scott?" I looked over the table to find him still staring at Jean. "Who do you hang out with?"

"Well, uh, you guys," Scott shrugged. "My condition makes it kind of hard for me to make friends outside of the Institute. Too many questions and all."

"Oh," I bit my lip wondering whether to agree or to apologize or just change the subject.

"Do vee have a new student at the institute?" Kurt interrupted before I could put my foot in my mouth.

"No. Why?" Scott frowned.

"Ven who is dat?" Kurt pointed across the courtyard to a kid who was crouched down. Just as I was about to ask Kurt why he thought that kid was supposed to be at the Institute, the boy I tjumped up and landed in the same crouch position on a branch in the tree. It was jump too high for a normal person to make and especially in the weird bow-legged crouch stance he kept. The more I looked at him the more odd things I noticed, like his skin was a slightly green color or that he lashed out his oddly lengthy tongue at the flies that buzzed around him.

"That's Todd," Scott informed us. "As you can probably tell, he's kind of frog-like, which is why he also goes by the name Toad. He's not with the institute, but he's definitely a mutant. He lives at this boarding house for orphans or something down the road."

"And who is dat vith him?" Kurt nodded in the same direction. I watched Scott turn his head and his frown deepened as he shook his head. I then turned to find Lance standing under the very tree that Todd was perched in, calling up to him. I took a sharp intake of breath in at the sight of him.

"Not sure. Maybe another mutant or maybe just another orphan," Scott offered.

"He looks normal," Kurt added.

"That doesn't mean he's not a mutant necessarily," Scott countered.

"Vat do you think, Keety?" Kurt placed his hand on my shoulder and I jumped out of my seat.

"Kitty?" Scott asked. "Are you okay?"

"Um, I just remembered that I, um... I gotta go," I quickly grabbed my bag and my lunch tray and sprinted towards the school. I couldn't seem to catch my breath at the table, and I wasn't ready to explain to Scott and Kurt about Lance. The only thing I could think to do was bolt. I heard them calling out to me, but ignored it as I added my lunch tray to the pile of dirty ones and made my way to my locker. For some reason I thought that Lance might follow me, but he never showed up. I stood around my locker, fiddling with the books while I waited for him to show. When the lunch bell rang some ten minutes later, I slammed the door shut and headed to my next class.

Of course, when I walked in, there was Lance, sitting at a table with an empty stool next to him. He kicked the stool out towards me as I came near and I cautiously took the seat.

"Hello, everyone. Today we have some new students, so welcome Lance Alvers and Katherine Pryde to our Chemistry class, please. Lance? Katherine?" the teacher called. I suddenly figured out what the last line of his note meant and glanced over at him to see a smirk planted on his face.

"Here," Lance held up his hand lazily.

"Oh, good. Well there's Mr. Alvers. Where is Miss Pryde?" the teacher began scanning the room.

"Kitty," I choked out as Lance's eyes settled on me.

"I'm sorry. Did you say, Kitten?" the teacher furrowed his brow with confusion as the entire class turned in my direction. I heard Lance chuckle next to me as my face reddened at the attention.

"I prefer to be called Kitty," I stated as clearly as I could manage at the time being.

"Ok, Kitty. I'll make a note of that," the teacher smiled politely. "Great. Then let's proceed with the rest of the roll call and then start class, shall we?" the teacher smiled wide and then began to call out names. I zoned out, scrambling for my backpack to find the note. I knew I should be paying attention and ignoring Lance, but I couldn't help but be curious about the cryptic message he had left me. I managed to pull it out and quickly scribbled across it.

_What are you doing here?_

I passed the note across to Lance and watched him raise an eyebrow at me. He glanced over in the teacher's direction and then reached over to steal my pen before huddling over the note. When he was done writing, he shoved the pen and paper in my direction. I scanned the page to find a one word answer written neatly under my question.

_Chemistry. _

I looked over and made sure to wait until he was watching to roll my eyes at him. Then I went back to wrote him another note.

_In Bayville?_

I passed the note back and watched him frown as he read it. He quickly replied and shoved the note back at me.

_Long story. Can't talk now. Later?_

I looked at him and he pointed to the teacher. I quickly responded and handed the note back.

_Like you care what the teacher thinks._

He chuckled slightly under his breath upon reading it and glanced at the teacher, who was now done with roll call and on to discussing the reading that had been assigned last time, before writing a note back.

_No. But you do._

I read it and sighed, remembering how easily he had pegged me. So he not only remembered my thing about being the perfect Kitty, but he was teasing me about it like he had back in Northbrook. I quickly wrote him another note and carefully slipped it towards him, keeping an eye to make sure the teacher was too busy writing on the chalkboard.

_Ok. When?_

It didn't take long for another note to be sent my way.

_I'll find you, Kitten._

I groaned quietly before sending him my response.

_KITTY!_

He smiled and slipped his hand under the table to grasp mine. I started to pull away, but it did feel nice, so I let my hand rest in his. I kept risking a look over at him to see if his expression changed or to see if he would suddenly turn and explain it all, but he kept his gaze straight forward with a bored expression on his face. When the bell rang, I jumped a little and Lance chuckled before giving my hand a squeeze and dropping it. He stomped out of the classroom like he couldn't wait to get away as I slowly gathered my books together and wondered what on earth was going on.


	10. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the long wait! If you haven't noticed, I've got another 3 stories I'm working on. Speaking of which, I'm going to shamelessly advertise the companion story to this one "What Really Really Happened" for a brief bit. If you're enjoying this story, it will plug in some missing information by giving you Lance's point of view on the events. As for this story, I'm real sorry if you're a Scott fan. I'm trying really hard not to bash him, but he just makes it so darn easy. Enjoy the update!

The rest of my classes seemed like a blur. All I could think about was all the cryptic messages Lance kept giving me and what they could possibly mean. He said we'd talk later, but how much later? I kept waiting for him to suddenly appear at my locker or slip into the seat next to me, but I didn't see him again all day. I was gathering up my books when I felt someone behind me.

"Finally," I sighed. "Now, are you going to explain what's going on or what?"

"Explain what?" I whipped around to find Scott looking at me confused.

"Uh…" I bit my lip and cursed myself for thinking it was Lance. Of course it wasn't. "Explain how I'm supposed to get home. I wasn't sure how to find you after class."

"Well, I would have told you at lunch to meet at the car by ten minutes after the last bell, but you ran off…" Scott frowned. "Is everything okay, Kitty? You seem really on edge."

"It's just being at a new school," I shrugged. "And everything."

"Okay," Scott nodded. "Well, we should go meet Kurt and Jean. They'll be waiting at the car."

"Right," I forced a smile. "Let's go."

"So…" Scott and I fell into step as we weaved our way through the hallways. "How was the first day?"

"Okay, I guess," I answered while trying to casually scan the hallways for Lance.

"Still taking it all in?" Scott put his hand on my shoulder to guide me, and probably comfort me. I smiled back at him and stopped my searching.

"Yeah," I answered. "I mean in some ways it's like any school I guess, but it's still new to me."

"What did you think of your classes?" Scott kept up the line of questioning, and I almost had to stop myself from calling him Dad because of how parental he was acting.

"They were okay. I feel like I'm kind of behind in some, but way ahead in others. But it'll work itself out, right?" I looked back as Scott held a door open for me and I walked through. Because I wasn't looking where I was going I stumbled down the first couple of steps and fell into someone's arms. When I looked up, there was Lance. Go figure.

"Woah! Watch out there," he laughed. "I can't always be around to catch you, ya know."

"Kitty, are you okay?" Scott immediately came up behind.

"Yeah," I shook my head as a blush crept over my cheeks. "I'm just klutzy."

"The gold medalist of klutzy," Lance mumbled as he released me.

"You didn't sprain anything did you? We've got a… uh… workout… when we get home," Scott put his hand back on my shoulder and frowned in concern.

"I'm just embarrassed," I assured him and then nodded in Lance's direction. "But I'm okay thanks to…"

"Oh, hi. I'm Scott Summers and this is Kitty Pryde," Scott held his hand out to shake.

"Lance," he responded off-hand while busy fumbling with a cigarette and lighter. Scott raised his eyebrow, whether in response to the cigarette, the unanswered handshake, or because he was waiting for a last name to be produced didn't matter as Lance just blew a puff of smoke and glanced at the hand Scott offered him. I thought I saw his gaze flicker to Scott's other hand on my shoulder, but I couldn't be sure.

"Well, Lance. Thanks for helping Kitty," Scott pulled his hand back and raked it through his hair. "But you really shouldn't smoke. It'll kill you, and those around you for that matter. Plus it's banned from school grounds, and it's illegal unless you're eighteen. Are you eighteen?"

"What are you?" Lance's brow furrowed. "Campus police or something?"

"Just a concerned citizen," Scott shrugged.

"Well, don't waste your concern on me," Lance smirked before taking another drag.

"Look, I'm just trying to be friendly," Scott argued.

"And you're trying a little too hard," Lance glared, and now I knew he was looking at Scott's arm on mine. Scott didn't seem to notice though.

"What is your problem?" Scott snapped.

"Yo, Lance. Can I get a ride, or what?" Todd hopped up at that moment and then he saw who Lance was talking to. "Oh, Summers."

"Hey, Todd," Scott offered without taking his eyes from Lance.

"Hey yourself, Summers," Todd replied. "Who's the babe?"

"The _girl _is Kitty," Scott corrected him. "She's new."

"Just how I like 'em," Todd stood up from his crouch position. "Hey, baby. Whatchya doin' with Summers?"

"She's joined us at the Xavier institute," Scott frowned at Todd.

"Ah, too bad. You're one of those weirdos," Todd shook his head and crouched back down.

"You're one to talk, Tolanksy," Scott grumbled.

"Lay off him, Shades," Lance snarled.

"Let's get out of here, man," Todd yanked at Lance's arm. "The X-geeks ain't worth it."

"I don't know about that," Lance smirked as his eyes raked over me sending a chill running down my spine.

"Come on, Kitty. We've got to meet the others and get back for our workout," Scott tugged on my arm.

"Right," I nodded to him before turning to Lance. "Well, thanks again… Lance?"

"Just be careful, Kitten," he smirked before turning to follow Todd who had already hopped off.

"It's Kitty, actually," Scott called after him.

"Yeah, yeah," Lance waved him off without looking back. I watched him go for a minute and then quickly caught up with Scott who was already stomping off to his car. When we got there, Jean was already sitting shot gun, a beefy looking guy leaning down to talk to her while Kurt sat in the back.

"Verr you guys are!" he shouted and waved his arms. Jean looked up and smiled before waving off the guy. As he walked past us, I felt his gaze on me and had to resist the urge to vomit. He actually looked a lot like Ross, and from his arrogant swagger, I figured he was probably like him in a lot more ways than one.

"What's wrong?" Jean immediately asked as Scott slid into the driver's seat.

"Just met Todd's latest friend," Scott started up the car. "He's a real jerk, that Lance, kid."

"Lance?" Jean turned to look back at me with a question on her face, but I did my best to block out her thoughts from my head.

"Yeah. And he was smoking," Scott shook his head. "On school grounds. Total troublemaker."

"He did help me out, though," I offered weakly.

"Yeah," Scott scoffed. "I'm sure it was out of the goodness of his tobacco infested heart."

"Well, he's new," Jean argued. "Maybe he just needs to settle in."

"So, is he a mutant?" Kurt asked, breaking an awkward silence. Scott shrugged but continued to be silent, obviously stewing. Jean looked at me with eyebrows raised waiting for me to answer.

"I guess we'll find out," I replied, careful to send Jean a clear thought to keep quiet about what she may or may not have seen in Northbrook.

"Yeah," Jean nodded with a bit of a smile. "I guess we will."


End file.
